Bright Blue Day

ROSL. In a different league

9th August 2018

Ben Friend

There are certain images that are conjured up when someone says the words, ‘Member’s club in St James’.Closed doors, old men snoring behind a broadsheet in the afternoon and a stifling staid atmosphere. While in one sense ROSL could be accurately described as a member’s club in St James’ these images couldn’t be further from truth.

The Royal Overseas League, to give its full title, came into existence at the beginning of the 20th century with the express aim to promote artistic and cultural development.

That work continues today. The problem is it’s a well-kept secret. That’s where BBD came in.

We were asked to help ROSL become famous for their work in the arts world with the aim of attracting new like-minded members.

We suggested making three films that would give people an idea of the work the club does and also what everyday life is like at ROSL.

We suggested the first film we make should be about the Annual Music Competition ROSL runs. This is a perfect expression of the central idea of ROSL. Young musicians compete for a chance to perform at the ROSL Gold Medal Final at the Queen Elizabeth Hall on The Southbank in central London.

We told the story of this year’s competition through performances and also the recollections of previous winners.

It proved to be powerful testament as previous participants rhapsodised about the support they received through ROSL and how being part of the competition was like joining a big beautiful creative family.

That story concluded with our second film that was all about the edge of seat evening as the four finalists competed for fame and the big prize in front of industry big wigs and royalty.

Our third film for ROSL was an exploration of what makes the club tick. We spoke to various people and it was a revealing journey. Each person regardless of whether they worked at ROSL or were a member all praised their club and spoke at length about what made it a special place form them.

In short it was gold dust.

ROSL were delighted with the results. The films now sit on their various social channels doing a great job of encouraging new members to join this wonderful place.